Role Models Barbie

Since 2015, Barbie has been on a mission to honor diverse role models, both modern-day and historical, who break boundaries in their fields to inspire the next generation of girls. Barbie is shining a light on female role models because every girl imagines she can be anything, but actually seeing that she can makes all the difference.

With 81 percent* of moms globally worried about the type of role models their daughters are exposed to, Barbie is igniting a conversation around the importance of positive role models, underscoring that you can’t be what you can’t see.

Barbie has honored women or “Sheroes,” including Ibtihaj Muhammad, Misty Copeland, Ava DuVernay, Eva Chen, Ashley Graham, Laurie Hernandez, Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb.

In addition to women breaking boundaries today, Barbie also has a historical line celebrating notable women throughout history.  The Inspiring Women™ dolls pay tribute to incredible heroines like Amelia Earhart, Katherine Johnson (shown right) and Frida Kahlo.

To date, Barbie has honored 60 role models and is committed to showing girls more role models by honoring a minimum of 10 each year.

2024

• Viola Davis (United States): Critically Revered Artist, Activist, Producer, Philanthropist, and Best-Selling Author 
• Shania Twain (Canada): Global Superstar, Celebrated Songwriter, and Style Icon 
• Dame Helen Mirren (United Kingdom): Acclaimed Actress and Advocate for Women’s Stories 
• Kylie Minogue (Australia): Artist 
• Maira Gomez (Brazil): Content Creator 
• Lila Avilés (Mexico): Director, Producer, and Screenwriter 
• Nicole Fujita (Japan): Model 
• Enissa Amani (Germany): Comedian  

2023

• Susan Wojcicki (United States) - Longtime YouTube CEO
• Anne Wojcicki (United States) - Co-Founder and CEO of 23andME
• Janet Wojcicki (United States) - Professor of Pediatrics and Epidemiology at UCSF
• Katya Echazarreta (Mexico) - Electrical Engineer and Science Show Host
• Dr. Maggie Aderin-Pocock (United Kingdom) - Space Scientist and Science Educator
• Dr. Antje Boetius (DE) - Marine Researcher and Microbiologist
• Yinuo Li (China) - Co-Founder of ETU Education

2022

• Shonda Rhimes (United States) - Founder of American Television Production Company Shondaland 
• Ari Horie (United States/Japan) - Founder & CEO, Women’s Startup Lab and Women’s Startup Lab Impact Foundation 
• Pat McGrath (United Kingdom) - Makeup Artist and Founder of Pat McGrath Labs  
• Melissa Sariffodeen (Canada) - CEO and Co-Founder of Canada Learning Code and Ladies Learning Code 
• Adriana Azuara (Mexico) - Founder of All4Spas   
• Doani Emanuela Bertain (Brazil) - Teacher and Founder of Sala 8   
• Jane Martino (Australia) - Chair and Co-Founder of Smiling Mind   
• Lan Yu (China) - Fashion Designer  
• Butet Manurung (Indonesia) - Founder and Director of SOKOLA 
• Sonia Peronaci (Italy) - Founder of Italian food website, ‘GialloZafferano’  
• Tijen Onaran (Germany) - CEO and Founder of Global Digital Women and Co-Founder of ACIDiversity Consulting  
• Lena Mahfouf (France) - Digital Creator, Videographer and Author of ‘Always More’ 

2019

• Lira (Lerato Molapo), Singer, Songwriter and Entrepreneur, South Africa– with a music career spanning 15 years and six studio albums, Lira has established herself as one of the foremost female artists in South Africa.
• Yara Shahidi, Actress, United States (shown left) – Actress, activist for education for girls and founder of Yara’s Club, an initiative aimed at bringing girls together to discuss social issue and learn how to take action
• Naomi Osaka, Tennis Champion, Japan – Professional tennis player who is currently ranked No. 1 in the Women's Tennis Association rankings, she became the first Japanese player in history to win a Grand Slam, defeating her childhood idol, Serena Williams, to capture victory at the 2018 U.S. Open
• Kelsea Ballerini, Singer & Songwriter, United States – 25-year-old country pop singer, songwriter, and the only female country artist to have three consecutive #1 songs from debut, Ballerini is paving the way for women in a male-dominated genre.
• Adwoa Aboah, Model & Activist, United Kingdom – a 26-year-old model, activist and founder of Gurls Talk, an online community where young women are free to discuss issues such as mental health, education, self-care, and relationships
• Kristina Vogel, Athlete, Germany – On the way to her third Summer Games and becoming the best female track cyclist of all time, Kristina suffered injury when she collided with a Dutch junior cyclist and suffered several broken bones and injuries that resulted in paralysis, leading to life in a wheelchair. Kristina continues to persevere and is a model for believing in yourself
• Eleni Antoniadou, Scientist in Regenerative Medicine and Bioastronautics, Greece – A multidisciplinary researcher in Regenerative Medicine, Artificial Organ Bioengineering and Space Medicine, she participated in the first successful artificial organ transplantation in the history of medicine
• Rosanna Marziale, Chef, Italy – Famous Italian Chef known for pushing boundaries in cuisine, she pioneered new techniques and recipes to create a series of signature dishes that earned her the nickname ‘Queen of Mozzarella”
• Ita Buttrose, Journalist, Australia – Newly appointed Chair of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, legendary media trail blazer, Ita Buttrose is the first-ever woman to edit a major metropolitan newspaper in Australia and youngest person to be appointed editor of the Australian Women’s Weekly, which was then, per capita, the largest-selling magazine in the world
• Dipa Karmakar, Artistic Gymnast, India – First Indian female gymnast to ever compete in the Olympic Games and the first Indian female artistic gymnast to win a gold medal at a global event
• Gülse Birsel, Writer, Scenarist & Actress, Turkey – Advocate for women’s rights
• Tessa Virtue, Ice Skater, Canada – Decorated figure skater and one-half of the youngest ice dance team ever to win a gold medal
• Karla Wheelock, Alpinist, Author & Conferencist, Mexico – First Iberiamerican woman to climb the Seven Summits, the highest mountains in the world
• Mariana Costa, Entrepreneur, Peru – Co-founder of Laboratoria, a social impact startup that is transforming Latin America’s tech sector into an example of diversity and inclusion by preparing thousands of women to launch careers in the tech sector
• Tetsuko Kuroyanagi, TV Talk Show Host & Author, Japan – Considered to be one of the first Japanese celebrities who achieved international recognition, she broke boundaries in Japanese television in the 70s & 80s by changing the traditional image of women in TV
• Chen Man, Photographer, China – Credited helping to the evolution of the China’s beauty aesthetic
• Melodie Robinson, Sports Commentator, New Zealand – As a sports journalist and presenter, and former international rugby union player for the New Zealand women's national rugby union team, she formed The Wonderful Group to encourage more diverse, more empowered women in sport media
• Iwona Blecharczyk, Truck Driver, Poland – Professional truck driver paving the way for women in the field and enduring extreme weather situations, ambassador for Truckers Life Foundation
• Lyasan Utiasheva, TV Show Host, Russia – Russian TV show host and former individual rhythmic gymnast who is a 5x champion of Russia and 6x World Cup winner
• Maya Gabiera, Surfer, Brazil – Holds the world record for the largest wave ever surfed by a woman and winner of the ESPY award for Best Female Action Sports Athlete
• Lisa Azuleos, Director, France – French director, writer, and producer empowering women through her films and role as president of Together Against Gynophobia

2017

• Ibtihaj Muhammad, Fencer, USA – The first American Olympian to compete while wearing a hijab who was honored as one of TIME magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” of 2016 (shown right).

2016

• Ashley Graham, Model and Body Activist, USA – American model and body activist, speaks at girls’ groups and high schools about body image, self-acceptance and female empowerment.
• Gabby Douglas, Gymnastics Champion, USA – The first African-American woman in Olympic history to become the individual all-around champion, and the first American gymnast to win gold in both the individual all-around and team competitions at the same Olympics. Her confidence, work ethic and belief in herself make her an extraordinary role model for girls.
• Misty Copeland, Principal Ballerina, USA – A principal dancer with the American Ballet Theater (ABT), who began dancing on a Boys & Girls Club basketball court and continues to be very active in local Clubs in various cities. She also works with Project Plié, ABT’s comprehensive initiative to increase racial and ethnic representation in ballet and diversify America’s ballet companies.
• Abby Wambach, Soccer Champion, USA –  American soccer player, coach, two-time Olympic gold medalist and FIFA Women’s World Cup champion.

2015

• Zendaya, Singer and Actress, USA – Encouraging girls to “raise their voices – she inspired people of all ages to stand up for themselves (shown left).
• Ava DuVernay, Director, USA – Director of the Academy Award Best Picture nominee, Selma, and founder of the African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement (AFFRM), which provides opportunities and resources to underrepresented filmmakers.
• Emmy Rossum, Actress, USA – Golden Globe®-nominated actress and spokesperson for Best Friends Animal Society, the only national animal welfare organization dedicated exclusively to ending the killing of dogs and cats in America's shelters and a leader in the no-kill movement.
• Eva Chen, Editor-in-chief, USA – Breaking boundaries by bringing inspiration to print as the youngest appointed female editor-in-chief of the national fashion magazine, Lucky.
• Kristin Chenoweth, Actress and Singer, USA – An inspiration on Broadway and beyond, the Emmy® and Tony Award®-winner also founded the Kristin Chenoweth Arts & Education Fund to cultivate young talent in the arts.
• Sydney “Mayhem” Keiser, Designer, USA – Five-year-old fashion designer whose work appeared in Vogue and collaborated with major national fashion brand, J. Crew, for the collection "Little Mayhem™ for J. Crew."
• Trisha Yearwood, Singer, Author and Actress, USA – A woman with many superpowers, succeeding as a GRAMMY Award-winning country music artist, best-selling author, Food Network host and entrepreneur.

* This online survey of 8,000 moms of daughters aged 0-10 years old, was commissioned by Mattel and conducted by market research company OnePoll, in accordance with the Market Research Society's code of conduct.

Source barbiemedia.com